This invention relates to the art of hand held, hot melt glue guns.
Hand-held glue guns are known. Known glue guns often provide a handle and trigger formed in the shape of a pistol. Guns of this configuration are operated by directing the tip of the gun to the desired area with a motion very similar to that of aiming a pistol and then dispensing the glue by squeezing the trigger.
The method of using the prior glue gun is generally imprecise, which makes use of the prior structures difficult, particularly, for projects involving small features or requiring precision.
In accordance with the invention, a hand held glue gun is provided with an elongate body portion, which lends itself to being held in the palm of the user""s hand. A trigger lever is provided, which may be operated by the user""s fingers when the body is so held in the user""s palm. By this configuration, the glue gun of the invention may be held, for example, upright, in a generally vertical orientation with the dispensing nozzle facing upward or downward, for precise deposition of the glue. As well, the glue gun may be held as one would ordinarily hold a flashlight, with the body in the palm and the fingers on the trigger lever and the nozzle facing forward, or with the body engaged by the fingers and the trigger lever operated by the thumb, or in other orientations.
A further advantage of the narrow configuration of the subject glue gun is that it may be used in a variety of situations where access is limited. For example, the glue gun of the invention lends itself to use in small spaces, for example, the interior of an audio speaker or an interior corner.
Because the body portion of the glue gun of the invention is elongate, the trigger lever and glue-stick feed mechanism are designed to accommodate a narrower, elongate configuration of the internal cavity. The trigger lever is pivotally attached to the body on one side of the heater cartridge or other heater element and includes an outer part that is shaped to engage the user""s fingers or palm. An inner part is transverse to the body and extends to the opposite side of the heater cartridge. The inner part is preferably D-shaped and receives the cartridge in the interior opening of the inner part, but it may have other shapes, such as a U or J-shape as well.
The part of the inner element that extends to the opposite side of the heater cartridge pivotally receives a linkage to a glue stick gripping mechanism. Thus, when the user squeezes the glue gun, the trigger lever pulls on the linkage to advance the glue stick and dispense glue.
Another feature of the invention is a stand for holding the glue gun. The stand provides vertical support elements for holding the glue gun with the longitudinal axis of the body generally horizontal. The stand includes a non-stick glue pad that is located under the nozzle tip when the glue gun is in the stand to catch drips.